KICK IT UP GREEK-STYLE!

Did your image make into our roster of top ten photos captured during the 56th Annual Greek Food Festival of Dallas?! Find out as we reveal our favorites from this year’s festival; thank you for joining us for another wildly successful event!

This baklava sundae takes the cake!

The GFFD’s resident “boys club” hams it up for the camera.

Warning - don’t challenge this Greek performer in a round of limbo.

Two raffle hopefuls pose pretty with the Kia Forte!

She’s ready for her close-up, thanks to the festival’s awesome face-painting artists!

Culture Club members pal around at the Agora.

Adorable tunics were must-haves at this year’s marketplace.

Spotted - revelers redefining “Sunday Funday” during the festival’s closing day!

So you think you can dance?

These stage stars stole the show!

Now that the 2012 festival is a wrap, don’t forget to stay connected with the GFFD year-round through our Facebook and Twitter pages, because we’re already counting down to our 2013 event; OPA!

Get your #FF hashtag ready … because the GFFD is celebrating our opening day with a festival-worthy Follow Friday round-up! We’re connecting you with each of our Culture Club members so you can track us on Twitter this weekend to keep up with the latest event highlights; we can’t wait to Kick It Up, Greek-Style!

• @MirandaBond007: Miranda Bond
• @NekiBosh: Neki Bosh, TheyreJustClothes.com
• @DallasSingleMom: Heather Buen, DallasSingleMom.com
• @WhereWearInTheCity: Courtney Edwards, WhereWearInTheCity.com
• @SocialMediaDFW: Danielle Glick, DallasFoodie.DGDesign.biz
• @AlexiaIsaak: Alexia Isaak, AlexiaIsaak.com
• @DallasSocials: Betsy Mitchell, TheDallasSocials.com
• @DrinkDallas: Susie Oszustowicz, SusieDrinksDallas.com
• @ByrdieFranco: Byrdie Franco Rocha, ByrdieFranco.com
• @TheMBQueen: Jennifer Vasquez
• @BitesOfStyle: Brandy Voirin, BitesOfStyle.com
• @MarthaRose: Martha Wilson, TheMarthaRose.Blogspot.com

You’ll spot many of our Culture Clubbers around the festival this weekend, and of course, at this evening’s Opa! Hour. Don’t forget to #FF @GreekFoodDallas as you follow along with all things festival-related on our official Twitter feed; we’ll have all the inside scoop throughout the weekend! 

The festival is finally here, and with just over 24-hours to go until we Kick It Up Greek-Style at the 56th Annual Greek Food Festival of Dallas, we’re giving you some last-minute scoop to help you pack your visit with even more food, fun, and fabulosity! 

• Get App Happy: Don’t forget to download the festival’s official smartphone app to easily and quickly navigate all the diverse activities going on during the weekend. You can snag the FREE app here, or by searching Greek Food Festival of Dallas.
• Be a Winner: We’ll be giving away lots of goodies during the 2012 GFFD, but our raffle is set to make someone very popular, because we’re raffling off a brand-new Kia Forte to the winning ticket holder! You can enter the raffle for $100, but hurry, because only 500 tickets will be sold!

• Your Ticket to Tasty Treats: For the first time in its history, the festival has initiated the sale of food and beverage tickets; once attendees arrive at the festival and make their way through the main gates, they’ll need to snag coupons for treats and drinks from the nearest ticket booth.
• It’s Not Too Late: You can still purchase passes to the 2012 festival online now! Guests buying tickets online can pick them up at the Will Call booth near the main entrance; prices are $6 for adults, and children under 12 get in for free. Those wishing to attend can also call the GFFD at 972.233.4880 to buy passes via the phone or purchase them upon arrival. 

Connect with the GFFD online throughout the duration of the festival via our Facebook and Twitter pages! We can’t wait to welcome you!

Danielle Glick, one of our 2012 Culture Clubbers and founder of delicious blog Dallas Foodie, inspires culinary cravings with her creative posts on the city’s latest hot spots. Having been named among CBS-DFW’s “10 Best DFW Foodies To Follow On Twitter”, Glick’s excellent taste has fast made her a Dallas favorite. Find out why we can’t wait to welcome Glick, along with her Culture Club cohorts, to this year’s festival!

Hot Headlines: What did CBS-DFW have to say about Glick’s uber-popular blog? “Dallas Foodie is the number one food-spotting source in the area. This account tweets photos of beautiful food, luscious drinks, great food deals, interesting food events and engages in lots of fun food conversations,” noted the media outlet, commenting on why her tasty Twitter feed is one to watch.

What’s on Her Plate?: Glick’s recent post dishing the details on a new Facebook app, The Food List Challenge - which is focused on 100 foods “you should eat before you die” - revealed that she’s tried a healthy percentage of the culinary creations featured on the app’s popular roster. Which Greek sweet made Glick’s roster of dining delicacies? Baklava, of course!

Around Town: As the social media director and president of DGdesign LLC, Glick adores helping restaurants plan their interactive media strategy. And when she isn’t busy “relentlessly seeking the best restaurants and bars in the Dallas - Ft. Worth metroplex,” you’ll find her guest blogging for websites like ILiveinDallas.com. Connect with Glick online a.s.a.p. through her now-famous Twitter feed, @Dallas_Foodie, or via her Facebook page!

For even more news about our Culture Clubbers and the GFFD, we hope you’ll connect with us online via our Facebook and Twitter pages!  Snag your festival passes online as well, and of course, make sure you sign up for the GFFD’s raffle, because the winner will receive a new Kia Forte - seriously! Check out our Facebook page now to learn more …

Fans of the Greek Food Festival of Dallas recently went wild over the mere mention of baklava on our social media pages. So, in honor of their enthusiasm and the dedication of our volunteers who are, as we speak, finalizing the baking and packaging delicious sweets for this weekend’s festival, we’d like to present foodie star Alton Brown’s favorite recipe for the Greek delicacy. Enjoy!

Brown poses with two young fans during a recent press tour.

THE GROCERY LIST:

• 2 t. cinnamon
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 15 to 20 allspice berries
• 6 oz. blanched almonds
• 6 oz. raw or roasted walnuts
• 6 oz. raw or roasted pistachios
• 2/3 C. + 1 1/4 C. sugar
• 1/4 C. + 1 1/4 C. water
• 1 t. rosewater
• 1 lb. phyllo dough (thawed)
• 8 oz. unsalted butter (melted and clarified)
• 1 1/4 C. honey
• 1 piece fresh orange peel

THE INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees
2. Place cinnamon and allspice berries into a spice grinder, grind thoroughly
3. Place the almonds, walnuts, pistachios, 2/3 C. sugar, and freshly ground spices into the bowl of a food processor; pulse until finely chopped, approximately 15 quick pulses; avoid making it pasty or powdery; set aside
4. Combine 1/4 C. water and rosewater in a small spritz bottle; set aside
5. Trim the phyllo to fit the bottom of a 13 x 9 x 2-inch metal pan; brush the bottom and sides of the pan with butter; lay down a sheet of phyllo and brush with butter; repeat this step nine more times for a total of 10 sheets of phyllo. 
6. Top phyllo with 1/3 of the nut/spice mixture and spread thinly, spritz thoroughly with the rose water; layer six more sheets of phyllo with butter in between each of them; follow with another 1/3 of the nuts, spritz with rosewater; repeat with another six sheets of phyllo, butter, and remaining 1/3 of nuts, spritz with rose water
7. Top with eight sheets of phyllo, brushing with butter in between each sheet
8. Brush the top generously with butter; place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes
9. Remove pan from the oven and cut into 28 squares; return pan to the oven and continue to bake for another 30 minutes; remove pan from the oven, place on a cooling rack, and cool for two hours before adding the syrup
10. Create the syrup during the last 30 minutes of cooling the baklava as detailed above; combine the honey, 1 1/4 C. water, 1 1/4 C. sugar, cinnamon stick, and orange peel in a four-quart saucepan, set over high heat
11. Stir mixture occasionally until the sugar has dissolved; once boiling, boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally
12. Remove from the heat, discard the orange peel and cinnamon stick
13. After the baklava has cooled for two hours, re-cut the entire pan following the same lines as before; pour the hot syrup evenly over the top of the baklava, allowing it to run into the cuts and around the edges of the pan
14. Allow the pan to sit uncovered until completely cool; cover and store at room temperature for at least eight hours and up to overnight before serving
15. May be stored, covered and at room temperature for up to five days

To learn more about the GFFD family’s Greek gourmands, check out the festival’s website; you can become a member and register to win a gift certificate to Stratos! And to keep up with the latest festival headlines, we hope you’ll connect with us online via our Facebook and Twitter pages!

Fans of sweet treats can’t wait to get their hands on the 6,000-plus finikia cookies that are ready and waiting for guests of the 56th Annual Greek Food Festival of Dallas! But if you’re already craving a sugary confection, try out this fabulous recipe for the Greek delights, as relayed by Helen McCallum. 

THE GROCERY LIST:

• 1/4 Lb. butter 
• 2 C. + 3/4 C. sugar 
• 2 C. mazola oil 
• 1 C. orange juice 
• 1 Jigger brandy or cognac 
• 3 t. baking powder 
• 1/2 t. cinnamon 
• 1/2 t. nutmeg 
• 7 C. flour 
• 1 C. chopped walnuts (finely chopped)
• 1 Lb. honey
• 3 C. water
• Lemon slice

THE INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cream butter well; gradually add to it the oil and 3/4 cup of the sugar
3. Continue beating until well creamed; add to this the orange juice and brandy, mix well
4. Sift the dry ingredients, using about three cups of the flour; add to the creamed mixture gradually; continue slowly adding the rest of the flour 
5. Form into oval shapes; use a grater to indent cookies, pressing dough into the grater with your fingertips
6. Once patterned has been applied, turn each cookie over and place on ungreased cookie sheet.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 35 minute and don’t allow cookies to brown; set aside until cool
8. In the meantime, prepare the syrup for the finikia by combining three cups of the sugar with the honey and water; bring the mixture to a boil
9. Boil syrup for between 15 and 30 minutes, skimming any brown froth from the top
10. Remove from heat and cool for three to four minutes; place syrup back on burner on very low heat only until warm
11. Dip each fully cooled cookie into the warmed syrup for around four minutes; roll cookies over and let stand in syrup for an additional three to four minutes
12. Remove cookies from syrup with a slotted spoon, placing them on a clean plate
13. Roll each cookie in the walnuts and place on the serving dish of your choice 

Need the perfect accompaniment to your finikia? Break out your briki and try out McCallum’s Greek coffee recipe! And to learn more about the GFFD family’s Greek gourmands, check out the festival’s website; you can become a member and register to win a gift certificate to Stratos! And to keep up with the latest festival headlines, we hope you’ll connect with us online via our Facebook and Twitter pages!

Meet Culture Club member Brandy Voirin, whose popular blog Bites of Style will have you craving the latest in fashion, food, and way-too-much fun! We adore Voirin’s inside scoop and irreverent perspective on Dallas’ social swirl, and she’s giving us a behind-the-scenes look at her family and a few of her favorite things.

GFFD//What is your favorite family tradition and how did it get started? 

Voirin//My favorite family tradition is gardening with my son! It took me four years to figure out the right time to grow tulips and seasonal flowers, and year after year the flowers would die. But one year, I finally got it right! Now it’s something that I love to do every year with my son, and five years later, this has become a great tradition that also includes my two-year-old, Sebastian.

Voirin//My true “Opa!” moment would be the day I became a mom. It brings me so much joy, and I couldn’t imagine my life without Jim!

GFFD//What far-out Greek food are you dying to try during this year’s festival?

Voirin//All the pastries! I have been starving for weeks trying to make sure my dresses for fashion appearances fit; so, I am ready for some Greek baked goodness!

Want to join the GFFD family? Check out the festival’s website to find out how and register to win a gift certificate to Stratos! For even more news about our Culture Clubbers and the GFFD, we hope you’ll connect with us online via our Facebook and Twitter pages!

Last year, we feted the opening of the festival with our inaugural Opa! Hour celebration, and we’re thrilled to again be kicking off the 56th Annual Greek Food Festival of Dallas with our second annual edition of the Friday evening event! Find out more about our Opa! Hour revelry as we prepare to welcome you to the festival in just 15 days!

Culture Club members pal around with friends during last year’s Opa! Hour.

• Save the Date: Friday, September 28, from 5 to 7 p.m.
• Find it: Everywhere! While most Opa! Hour events will take place near the main stage in our central pavilion, the entire festival will be celebrating our second annual cocktail bash.
• The Guest List: Your festival passes give you access to all things Opa! Hour, and you can buy them online now or at the door upon arrival; additionally, your food and drink tickets can be purchased inside the festival.
• Fun and Fabulosity: Bring your dancing shoes, because Opa! Hour will feature a dance contest, as well as lots of music, giveaways, and of course, adult beverages!

To learn more about the GFFD family and the festival, check out our website; you can become a member and register to win a gift certificate to Stratos! And to keep up with the latest festival headlines, we invite you to connect with us online 24/7 via our Facebook and Twitter pages!